Echoes of the Heart (3 page)

Grateful Tom had
postponed any further confrontations, she listened quietly while they discussed
her.
 
She heard Tom’s voice while he
talked to Margaret.
 
“I think Raeden has
a problem with this marriage,” he confided as he assisted her through the
doorway.
 
“I sure hope she’s not making a
mistake.”

When footsteps
echoed across the floor below, she hurried to her room and quietly closed the
door.

She began to feel
faint and breath came short.
 
Her room
felt stifling.
 
Discarding her clothing,
she pulled on a loose-fitting, blue silk nightgown.
 
It would be a long night.
 
With all this on her mind, how could she
possibly sleep?
 
A full moon shown
brightly through her window, a round silver orb casting shadows around the
room, giving her a sense of warmth as she sank into the softness of her thick
featherbed.
 
The sounds of cicadas in the
trees outside her window temporarily relieved her mind of the emerging
dilemma.
 
It did not take long however,
for the thoughts to reemerge and she cried herself to sleep.

Two

The next morning
she awoke early, climbed out of bed and noticed a puffy complexion staring at
her from the reflection in the vanity mirror.
 
She observed the dark circles under her eyes and a thick mass of curls
rumpled from the restless night. “What a sorry bride you will make.”
 
Bride,
what a joke.
  
I look more like a corpse.

Diane called her
name as she rapped on her bedroom door and swept inside after Raeden invited
her to enter.
 
A lovely woman in her
forties, she still had the figure of a young girl with long blonde hair and
eyes the color of sapphires.
 
When she
entered, elegance and self-assurance showed in her confident walk and to Raeden’s
surprise, her riding outfit consisted of a plaid flannel shirt tucked in boys
riding beeches and black riding boots.
 
She had pulled her flaxen hair back in a ribbon and held a hat in her
hands.
 
A radiant smile showed straight
white teeth.

Her youthful
stride carried her across the room. “I thought I would see about the ride you
promised.”

At the reminder of
the morning ride, a smile spread across her lips.
 
She hurried to get dressed and brushed her
hair.

Diane peered at
the dark circles under her eyes.
 
“You
look like you had a restive night.”

“Yes, you could
say so.”
 
She reached for a dress from
her armoire, restlessness building up inside.

“I think I had too
much to drink last night.
 
I guess I made
quite a fool of myself.”
          

A look of
compassion crossed Diane’s face.
 
“Well,
maybe a little.
 
Perhaps we can talk
about it, if you feel it will help.”

Raeden slipped
behind the triple-fold white wooden screen placed around the bathtub beside the
fireplace. While donning her summer dress, she said. “That would be nice.
 
I wanted to discuss something with you.
 
I have my riding clothes in the barn.
 
It upsets mother when I wear breeches.
 
I like to ride the same way.”

“Well, where I
live this is the only way to ride.”
 
Diane’s mouth curved in an impish grin.

Raeden brushed her
hands down the folds of her lavender day dress and walked toward the basin atop
a washstand next to her chest of drawers.

Raeden cleaned her
teeth, splashed some water over her face and brushed out her hair, letting it
fall around her shoulders.
 
She tied her
hair at the base of her neck with a ribbon and proceeded out of the room with
energetic strides.

“I had the groom
saddle our horses, so we will be able to leave right away.”

“Great.
 
Let’s get out of here.”
 
They bolted to the front door like children
on Christmas mornings, lifting her spirits, and Raeden began to feel an urge to
laugh aloud.

As they sprinted
to the stable, Raeden glanced at the blue sky, and a warm breeze caressed her
face.
 
Brilliant red birds raced through
the trees.
 
What a perfect morning for a ride.

When the two women
entered the stable, Raeden moved to the trunk and pulled out her riding garb
then dressed in the tack room, elation glowing in the pit of her stomach when
she re-entered and stood next to her aunt.
 
Diane smiled her approval and winked at Raeden.
 
They walked outside to mount their rides.

Feeling free from
her worries for the moment, Raeden bounded toward Arte running a hand over his
soft black muzzle and kissing the soft spot between his nostrils.
 
As the horse stamped his feet in
anticipation, she climbed with ease into the saddle.
 
She felt his power beneath her while he
bobbed his head and snored in expectation.
 
Instant relief fell over her as the worries of the previous day drained.

Diane’s bronze
colored mount, a long-legged hunter, had no difficulty keeping up with
Arte.
 
Raeden thought Diane appeared
almost regal as she sat straight and sure in the saddle.
 
She admired Diane and it had grown over the
years.
 
They rode out at a moderate pace,
taking in the sight of fluffy clouds resembling cotton boles spread over a
clear blue sky.

Once they entered
the green fields on the edge of town, they quickened their pace, galloping
toward the edge of the woods outside of town.
 
Their superb riding skills showed as they raced the fence line until it
ended in lush open fields, sprinkled with wild flowers glistening with morning
dew.
 

After some time,
they approached a gentle stream meandering through a stand of dogwoods
flowering with white petaled blossoms.
 
The jade green meadow grass rose two feet high.
 
Along the edge of the stream, wildflowers
grew in abundance and white fairy-like seeds swirled in a vortex giving the air
a magical sensation.
 
All the fragrances
mingling with the warming air gave Raeden a sense of euphoria as she inhaled
the late summer air deeply into her lungs.

           
They
slowed their pace near the stream and dismounted walking toward the clear
rippling water, taking in the peaceful splendor all around.
 
Diane motioned Raeden toward a small clearing
located under one of the tall flowering trees adjacent to the water, spreading
boughs over moss-covered rocks lining the creek.

           
They
picked a spot to bask in the sweet bouquet and watch the trees swaying in the
breeze, tying the horses in a nearby pasture.

Raeden walked
alongside Diane, her feet sinking slightly in the loam.
 
“It seems like a dream, doesn’t it?”

           
“Yes,
it is very lovely.
 
Let’s sit and
talk.”
 
Diane said pointing to a spot
near the water’s edge.

           
They
pulled off their boots and stockings then dangled their feet in the pristine
water.
 
The sedating effect brought a
sigh of relief.
 
Raeden pulled her knees
to her chest taking off her hat and setting it beside her.
 
Diane moved near, touching her softly on the
shoulder while they sat down close to each other.

           
“Okay,
sweetheart, what’s wrong?
 
Something is
troubling you.
 
Why are you so tense and
anxious?
 
I’m sure it will help to
discuss this and you know it will remain just between us.
 
No one else has to know.”

Raeden knew Diane
would keep their conversation in confidence and she drew her eyes upward to
meet her gaze.

“I don’t exactly
know where to start.”
 
Her cheeks burned
with embarrassment and she suddenly felt imprudent.
 

“Just begin
anywhere.
 
It doesn’t matter.”
 
A look of concern settled on Diane’s soft
features as she twirled a blade of bright green grass between her fingers.

           
“Okay.
 
I guess I have always been looking for
something just out of reach and I could never understand why.
 
When I grew older and you would visit, I
watched you and Uncle Mike, how you behave with each other.
 
You seemed so much in love.”
 

Shifting her
weight, she turned raising her hand to make a point.
 
“He is always kind and considerate and you
with him.
 
You don’t mind displaying your
affection to each other when people are around and discussing important matters
between you like equals.
 
I want the same
for myself.”
 
Letting out a sigh, she
replaced her hand and increased the grip, lowering her chin to her knees.
 

Diane’s eyebrows
rose, a sly grin touched her lips.
 
“Don’t think we didn’t have rough times in the beginning.”
 
Raeden’s brows lifted, eyes fixed waiting for
her to continue.
 
“He saw me as a
pampered city girl and our whirlwind romance did not allow us the chance to
fully understand the basic needs of the other.”
 
She brushed a pale golden strand away from her eye, Raeden the captive
audience.

She could not
imagine at one time they had problems in their marriage.

Diane lifted a
hand, palm forward fingers spread.
 
“I
desired freedom allowing me to be my own person and he felt threatened when I
would not let him make all my decisions.”
 
Her face tightened slightly showing a dimple in her cheek.

Raeden nodded,
curling a lip between her teeth.
 
“So,
how did you work it out?”

Diane released a
slow breath and her eyes squinted from amusement.
 
“At first we argued constantly.
 
A couple of times we came close to separating
but our love and admiration for each other brought an effort to
compromise.”
 
She shifted her weight to
curl her knees and sit on one hip, her hand a brace.
 
“We began to communicate instead of
quarrelling.
 
Once we exposed our fears
and desires, trust grew enabling us to express ourselves without the threat of
reprisal.”
 
Diane chuckled. “It took some
time of course, but in the end we became friends as well as lovers.”

“Christopher would
never be able to do that.
 
He is too vain
to ever swallow his pride and compromise.”
 
She would never admit her pride would not allow her to permit a man to
order her about like a child.

“Well, maybe
you’re right.
 
Now why don’t you
continue?
 
I indeed find this quite
interesting”

“I saw men
socially and expected to get a feeling to let me know when the right man came
along.
 
It never happened.
 
Then I began to feel juvenile in my position
and thought maybe people could get close gradually and eventually those
feelings would alter.”
 
She stood and
started pacing in bare feet, while continuing to look into Diane’s clear blue
eyes.

           
“After
meeting Christopher, I knew it pleased my parents.
 
In addition, I hoped those feelings would
eventually arise and everything would be perfect between us.
 
It didn’t happen.”
 
Her apprehension began to subside as she
unloaded her burden.

“When he proposed,
I began to believe being married would make the difference.
 
You know, the feelings would come in time
with the close bond.
 
I started becoming
edgy and nervous around him and he didn’t seem to notice.
 
I know it would never be that way with you
and Uncle Mike.”
 
She again sat next to
Diane, wringing her hands and a long sigh escaped.

           
Watching
the ascent of a gray squirrel scurrying up an adjacent tree, she paused to
watch its progress before coming back to the moment and settling to the ground
once again.
 
Oh, to be free like that.
 
“
And
now, I have this wedding coming up tomorrow and I’m scared.”
 
Her eyes flared in panic.
 
“I want more, but I have made a promise to
Christopher.
 
Both of our families are so
happy about this marriage.
 
My family loves
Christopher and his parents are so fond of me.”
 
She dropped her head in her hands.
 
“I don’t want to humiliate everyone and cause a scandal.
 
I’m miserable.”
 
Tears flooded her eyes and she began to sob
quietly in her hands.

           
Diane
reached to put her arm over her shoulder and pulled her closer.
 
She stroked her hair and in a soothing voice
replied.
 
“Well, looks like we have a
little problem, don’t we?”